Thursday, May 18, 2017

Mom of disabled student left stranded on school bus in Toronto files $700K lawsuit

The mother of a disabled teen forgotten on a school bus and left alone for hours has launched a lawsuit against those she’s holding responsible, claiming her daughter has sustained ongoing trauma as a result of the incident.

Laura Mastache claims her daughter Wendy has become noticeably more fearful and withdrawn in the months since a driver forgot to drop her off at her Toronto-area high school, drove the vehicle to a funeral and abandoned the 19-year-old on the bus on a chilly winter’s day.

Both mother and daughter are named as plaintiffs in the suit, which accuses the driver, bus company Stock Transportation and the Toronto District School Board of negligence.

The suit is seeking total damages of $700,000 and alleges injury to dignity and loss of companionship as a result of the incident that took place on Jan. 23. None of the allegations in the suit have been proven in court.

Laura Mastache said her daughter did not sustain physical injuries in the incident, but said the alleged psychological changes she’s observed, which include reluctance to go to class and sleep alone, should be acknowledged.

“We have some regressions in some areas,” Mastache said in an interview. “It took us years for her to overcome some fears, now it’s going back to square one.” (more...)